Eye mounting for dolls and other toys



Aug. 5, 1930. J. GRUBMAN 1,772,232

EYE OUNTING FOR DOLLS AND OTHER TOYS Filed Sept. 21, 1926 INVENTOR L001 firafimam Xv. ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 5, 1930 UNITED STATES LEO J. GRUBMAN, on BELLE HARBOR, NEW YORK EYE MOUNTING FOR DOLLS AND OTHER TOYS Application filed September 21, 1926. Serial No. 136,762.

This invention relates to eye mountings for dolls, and has for its primary object and purpose to provide a novel means for mounting or supporting the individual eye memhere in the respective eye sockets of a doll head and embodying means for imparting lateral oscillatory motion to said eye members.

- It is a more particular object of the invention to provide an eye mounting including a transverse rod or axis fixedly supported within the doll head, an oscillatory pendulum loosely suspended from said rod and movable axially thereof, and eye members having means with which parts of said pendulum cooperate to oscillate said members aboutthe axis of said rod in the swinging movement of the pendulum and to also impart a turning movement to said eye members about vertical axes and in the same direction in the axial shifting movement of the pendulum along said rod.

It is also an additional object of my present improvements to provide an eye mounting of the above character which consists of a minimum number of parts of exceedingly simple form whereby the device will be reliable and positive in its operation and capable of manufacture at comparatively low cost.

\Vith the above and other objects in view, the invention consists in the improved eye mounting for dolls, and in the form, construction and relative arrangement of its several parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and subsequently incorporated in he subjoined claims.

In the drawings, wherein T have disclosed one simple and practical embodiment of the invention, and in which similar reference characters designate corresponding. parts throughout the several views,-

Figure 1 is a horizontal sectional view through the front portion of a dolls head showing my improved eye mounting arranged therein with the eye members in normal open position, a part of the mountingbeing shown in section substantially along the line l1 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1, and r Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view similar to Fig. 1, showing the eye members after they have been moved laterally in one direction from the neutral position. i v

For the purpose of illustrating one application of my present invention, in the accompanying drawing, I have shown a section of a doll head 5 which may be molded or otherwise fashioned from wood pulp, papier mach or other suitable composition material. The front wall of thisdoll head is provided with the usual eye sockets indicated at 6 located in appropriate spaced relation to the other molded facial features of the head. Upon the front wall of the doll head between the eye sockets 6 there isformed an inwardly projecting lug or boss 7 which may be of cylindrical or other form and is centrally provided with a horizontally extending slot slot 8 and approximately at its center is recessed as at 9 to provide spaced bearing seats 10. The opposite side walls of the doll head at the outer sides of the sockets 6 and in line with the slot 8 are notched or recessed as at 11.

The eye mounting per so, as herein shown includes a supporting rod or shaft 12 which is positioned transverselyof the front wall of the doll head in parallel relation thereto with its ends engaged in the notches 11, the intermediate portion of said rod being positioned in the slot 8 and in bearing contact against the spaced seats 10. The supporting rod 12 is fixedly retained in this position by the pin 13 which extends vertically across the slot 8 in close contact with the rear side of the rod 12 and has its ends anchored in the projecting lug or boss '7 on the head wall. By

or bifurcation 8. Said lugat the base of the thus holding the rod 12 in close bearing contact on the spaced seats 10, angular movement of said rod in the slot 8 relative to the pin 13 is effectually prevented.

The eye members 14 as herein shown are in the form of substantially hemi-spherical shells of celluloid or other suitable material, and each of these shells is provided in its opposite side walls with a horizontally elongated slot 15 throughrwhich the rod or shaft 12 extends. These shells have a loose fit in the respective sockets .6 and are very accurately formed so that their peripheral surfaces move in arcs concentric with the concave walls of said sockets.

The elongated slots 15 in the walls of the eye shells permit of a lateral rocking movement of the respective shells about vertical axes intersecting the axis of the rod or shaft 12. Such movement of the eye members as well as the usual vertical oscillating motion thereof is imparted through the medium of a pendulum loosely suspended from the shaft 12. As herein shown, this pendulum is in the form of a'metal plate 16 stamped by means of suitable dies toprovide an elongated body portion having an arm 17 at each end thereof projecting at right, angles tov the plane of said body portion. The body portion of the plate is provided with a central horizontally elongated opening 18 and the edge of said platelabove the said opening is angularly offset in a rearward direction as at 19.

Each of the arms 17 has a part 20 projecting above the upper edge of the body of the plate 16, said arms being also each provided with a car 21 ofreduced width apertured as at22 to loosely receive the rod or shaft 12. The forward edge of each arm '17 above and below the ear 21 is adapted for en-,

gagement in the V-shaped notches 23 ,provided in the rear edge of the respective eye members 14 at the upper and lower sides thereof.

The body of the pendulum plate 16 is centrally formed with a depending extension 24 angularly oflset from the plane of said plate and having a suitable I weight 25 attached thereto. A resilient tongue 26 is also pivotally connected at one of its ends with the plate extension 24, the other or free end of said tongue adapted for yielding contact against the lower front wall of the doll head to limit 1; the vertical oscillating movement of the eye members to-open position. This stop tongue 26 being pivotally connected with the plate 16 may be readily turned to a position at right angles to that illustrated in the drawing so that the eye-mounting may be inserted and applied in its operative position through the neck of the doll head. Also, this tongue can be easily bent to project in angular relation to the plane'of the extension 24 to properly contact with the wall of the doll head as may be required by the particular contour thereof shaft 12, and the arms 17 of said plate being engaged with the rear edges of the eye members, said eye members will be oscillatedin the respective sockets and moved from an open to a closed position in the usual manner. Such movement of the eyes to the closed positionis limited bycontact of the angularly offset flange 19 of the pendulum plate with the end face ofthe-l-ug'or projection 7 on the head wall.

' In addition to this vertical oscillating movement of the eye members, said eye members may also be laterally moved in their respective sockets in either direction tosimulate a rolling movement of the eye pupils from side to side. This is accomplished by simply tilting the doll laterally in the desired direction from the upright position, thus causing the loosely suspended pendulum to shift axially along the rod 12 in the same direction as that in which the doll is tilted. As the forward edges of the arms 17 are engaged in the notches 23 of the eye shells, it is apparent that the two eye shells will be si- 'multaneously rocked in an opposite direction to the direction in which the doll is tilted about vertical axes which intersect the axis of therod or shaft 12, thus causing a movement of the pupils on the exposed surfaces of the eye shells from a central position with respect to the sockets to a position at one side thereof, such movement continuing until one 'side edge of the V-shaped recesses 23 comes into contact with the side face of the arm 17 which limits the lateral rocking motion of the eye members. This position of the eye members is clearlyillustrated in Fig. 4 of the drawings. It will of course, be apparent that when the doll is laterally tilted in the other direction, the weighted pendulum will slide in the same direction along the rod 12 p to laterally rock the eye members with respecttov said rod and position the eye pupils adjacent the opposite sides of the respective eye sockets from the position illustrated in the drawing. Thus, it will be observed that in this simultaneous lateral rocking motion of the eye members, the pupil'of one eye member is moved towards the inner side of one socket while the pupil of the other eye member moves towards the outer side of the ings, theconstruction, manner of operation and several advantages of my present improvements will be clearly and fully under stood. It will be seen that I have succeeded in producing a device whereby the desired lateral rolling motion of the eye members in addition to the usual oscillatory movement thereof is obtained and without necessitating the provision of other mechanical elements in addition to the ordinary gravity swinging pendulum whichis of course, an essential adjunct of all such devices wherein the vertical eye motion of the sleeping doll is produced. Further, it will be observed that in my construction, this pendulum is in the form of a simple stamped metal plate and that the operative connection between this plate and the eye members involves no delicately constructed parts or other means which might have a tendency to interfere with or frictionally resist the free rolling or rocking motion of the eye members in either direction relative to the shaft or axis of the eye mounting. Accordingly, it is evident that such a device will be positive and reliable in its functional 7 operation and can also be rapidly produced in large quantities at comparatively low manufacturing cost.

While I have herein shown and described one simple and practical embodiment of my present improvements, it is nevertheless to be understood that the essential features thereof might also be incorporated in various other alternative mechanical forms, and I therefore, reserve the privilege of resorting to all such legitimate changes in the form, construction and relative arrangement of the several parts as may be fairly incorporated within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

I claim:

1. In combination with a toy having a head provided with spaced eye openings in the wall thereof, an eye member loosely positioned in each of said eye openings, an operating member for said eyes, means. supporting said member from the head wall for movement by gravity towards and from the said wall and also in a direction transversely of the head, and said member having relatively fixed parts directly cooperating with means integrally formed on the walls of the respective eye members to transmit vertical or lateral oscillatory motion to the eye members relative to the walls of the eye openings.

2. In combination with a toy having a head provided with spaced eye openings in the wall thereof, spaced eye members loosely positioned in the respective eye openings, and means for retaining said eye members in operative relation to the walls of the eye openings including a pendulum, means for suspending said pendulum from the wall of the head for swinging movement towards and from said wall and for rectilinear bodily movement transversely of said head, said pendulum having means cooperating with means on the rear ends'of the respective eye members to transmit vertical or lateral oscillatory motion to said eye members relative to the walls of the eye openings.

3. In combination with a toy having a head provided in the wall thereof with spaced eye openings, a shaft extending transversely of the head and means for fixedly mounting said shaft within said head, eye members loosely engaged in the respective. eye openings andhaving means permitting of their vertical and lateral oscillation relative to the shaft, and gravity operable means loosely suspended from said shaft for rotative and axial movement thereof, said gravity operable means including spaced parts retaining the eye members in said openings and directly coacting with means on the re-' spective eye members to transmit vertical or lateral oscillatory motion to said eye members relative to the walls of the eye openings.

4:. In combination with a toy having a head provided in the wall thereof with" spaced eye openings, a shaft extending transversely of the head and means for fixedly mounting said shaft within said head, eye members loosely engaged in the respective eye openings, said eye members having means permitting of their vertical and lateral oscillation relative to the shaft and means suspended from said shaft for rotative and axial movementthereon and having relatively fixed parts directlycoacting with means on the respective eye members and operable by gravity to oscillate said eye members about the axis of said shaft, or to oscillate said eye members about axes perpendicular to the shaft axis. 1 I

5. In combination with a toy having a head prov ded in the wall thereof with spaced eye openmgs, a shaft extendin transversely of the head and means for fixedly mounting sald shaft within said head, eye members loosely engaged in the respective eye openlngs, a pendulum having spaced parts loosely engaged upon said shaft and suspended thereby for swinging movement in a plane vert cal to the said shaft andfor gravityshding lateral movement axially along said shaft, and means cooperating with the respectlve eye members to transmit vertical or lateral oscillatory motion to the eye members 1n the respective movements of said pendulum relative to the shaft.

6. In combination with a toy having a head prov ded in the wall thereof with spaced eye openings, a shaft extending transversely of the head and means for fixedly mounting said shaft wlthln said head, eye members loosely engaged in the respective eye openings, each of said eye members consisting of a hollow shell open at its rear side and the wall of the shell having horizontally elongated slots through which said shaft extends, and a penparts of the pendulum having means coopere ating with the rear edges of the eye shells to transmitvertical or lateral oscillatory motion to the'eye members relative to-the walls of the eye, openings.

7. In combination with a toy having a hollow head provided in the wall thereof with spaced eye receiving sockets, a part suspended within the head, suspending means for said part permitting of the free rectilinear shifting movement of said part in a line parallel to the common geometric axis of the eye sockets, an eye member loosely engaged in each of said eye sockets, and means movable as a unit with said part engaged with the eye members and acting to translate the rectilinear mo-ve- V ment of said part into oscillatory motion of the eye: members about axes perpendicular to said common geometric axis of the eye sockets.

8. In combination with a toy having a hollow head provided in the Wall thereof with spaced eye receiving sockets, a shaft fixedly mounted in the head and extending in substantially parallel relation to the common geometric axis ofsaid eye sockets, a part suspended from said shaft for axial sliding movement along the same, eye members loosely engaged in the respective eye sockets, and said part having means cooperatively engaged with said eye members and acting to translate the axial sliding movement of said part into oscillating motion of the eye members about axes intersecting the axis of said shaft.

9. In combination with a toy'having a hollow head provided in the Wall thereof with spaced eye receiving sockets, a part suspended withln the head, suspendlng means for said part permitting of the free rectilinear shifting movement of said part in a line parallel to the common geometric axis of the eye sockets, an eye member loosely positioned in each of said eye sockets, and'said part having integrally formed spaced portions opposedto therespective sockets and provided with means coacting with the respective eye members to translatethe rectilinear movement of said part into oscillatory motion of the eye members about axes perpendicular to said common geometric axis of the eye sockets.

10. In an eye mounting for dolls, eye members adapted to be loosely engaged in spaced eye receiving sockets of'the doll head Wall,

7 and means for laterally oscillating said eye members about axes perpendicular to the common geometric axis of the eye sockets,

said means comprisinga member having spaced relatively fixed parts directly coacting with the respective eye members and means for supporting said member'from the Wall of the doll head for rectilinear sliding move- LEO J. GRUBMAN. 

